AL-MUKALLA: The Houthi militia in Yemen pledged on Wednesday to participate in an anticipated Iranian reprisal attack on Israel, following the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on Wednesday.
Mahdi Al-Mashat, president of the militia’s Supreme Political Council, reiterated support for Iran, Hamas and other Iran-backed groups in the region as he ordered a three-day period of mourning and the lowering of flags after Haniyeh was killed by a suspected Israeli air strike, hours after attending the swearing-in ceremony for Iran’s new president.
The official Houthi news agency reported that Al-Mashat “reaffirmed Yemen’s unwavering support for Hamas and the resistance axis, emphasizing that the Zionist and American enemies must bear responsibility for the escalating conflict and targeted assassinations of resistance leaders.”
Since November, the Houthis have been targeting vessels in international shipping lanes in the Red Sea and other waters off the coast of Yemen with missiles, armed drones and drone boats. They say that are doing so in support of the Palestinian people, in an attempt to force Israel to halt its military operations in the Gaza Strip.
The Houthi attacks have also extended to a direct assault on Israel. On July 19, an explosives-laden drone launched by the militia hit a residential area in Tel Aviv, killing one person and injuring at least 10. Israeli authorities responded by attacking the sea port and oil-storage facilities in the Houthi-held Yemeni city of Hodeidah, killing six people and injuring at least 80, according to the militia.
Hamed Asem, the deputy governor of Sanaa province, said during an interview with Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV that the militia would join in reprisal attacks by regime in Tehran and its proxy groups in the region in retaliation for the assassination of Haniyeh in Tehran.
“Iran, us and the rest of the axis of resistance will all respond with deadly force,” he said.
In a message posted on social media network X, Houthi leader Mohammed Al-Houthi condemned the killing of the Hamas political leader as “a heinous terrorist crime and a flagrant violation of laws and ideal values,” but did not say whether the militia would assist Iran in any retaliation against Israel.
Israel has yet to claim responsibility for the assassination. But Yemeni experts believed that by targeting Haniyeh deep within Iranian territory, Israeli authorities intended to send a message to Tehran and its proxies that it can and will kill their leaders if they continue to attack Israel.
“Iran and proxies plunged the region in turmoil with total impunity because the international community has been reluctant to take strong action to hold them accountable,” Nadwa Al-Dawsari, a nonresident fellow at the Middle East Institute in Washington, D.C., told Arab News.
“With recent assassinations, Israel has established its deterrence. It will go directly after top leaders if Iran and its proxies continue to target Israel.
“The Houthis have been the most reckless of Iran’s proxies, as evidenced by their attacks in the Red Sea. Given their past actions, it’s certainly possible they could attempt another attack against Israel.”
Meanwhile, the US Central Command said on Wednesday morning that it destroyed three remotely operated boats in the Red Sea with which the Houthis intended to attack international shipping.
The US and the UK have carried out military strikes on Houthi targets in Sanaa, Hodeidah and other provinces in Yemen held by the militia, targeting missile and drone launchers, storage facilities and military locations in an effort to weaken the militia and halt the attacks on shipping.
Houthis vow to aid Iranian retaliation against Israel for killing of Hamas leader in Tehran
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Houthis vow to aid Iranian retaliation against Israel for killing of Hamas leader in Tehran
- Mahdi Al-Mashat, president of the Yemeni militia’s Supreme Political Council, expresses support for Iranian regime and its proxies in region
- Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh killed on Wednesday by suspected Israeli air strike hours after attending swearing-in ceremony for Iran’s new president
Algeria inaugurates strategic railway to giant Sahara mine
- The mine is expected to produce 4 million tons per year during the initial phase, with production projected to triple to 12 million tons per year by 2030
- The project is financed by the Algerian state and partly built by a Chinese consortium
ALGEIRS: Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Sunday inaugurated a nearly 1,000-kilometer (621-mile) desert railway to transport iron ore from a giant mine, a project he called one of the biggest in the country’s history.
The line will bring iron ore from the Gara Djebilet deposit in the south to the city of Bechar located 950 kilometers north, to be taken to a steel production plant near Oran further north.
The project is financed by the Algerian state and partly built by a Chinese consortium.
During the inauguration, Tebboune described it as “one of the largest strategic projects in the history of independent Algeria.”
This project aims to increase Algeria’s iron ore extraction capacity, as the country aspires to become one of Africa’s leading steel producers.
The iron ore deposit is also seen as a key driver of Algeria’s economic diversification as it seeks to reduce its reliance on hydrocarbons, according to experts.
President Tebboune attended an inauguration ceremony in Bechar, welcoming the first passenger train from Tindouf in southern Algeria and sending toward the north a first charge of iron ore, according to footage broadcast on national television.
The mine is expected to produce 4 million tons per year during the initial phase, with production projected to triple to 12 million tons per year by 2030, according to estimates by the state-owned Feraal Group, which manages the site.
It is then expected to reach 50 million tons per year in the long term, it said.
The start of operations at the mine will allow Algeria to drastically reduce its iron ore imports and save $1.2 billion per year, according to Algerian media.
